Animal stains – we love our pets, but it’s a challenge when they use the carpet as a toilet ! To remove urine stains the simplest and most cost effective method is to wet the area with white vinegar and then sprinkle baking soda over the vinegar. Some people claim that using vinegar leaves a strong smell that will attract the pet to reoffend, however, if you use baking soda this will absorb the odour of the vinegar and the stain. Ideally, wait at least a day before vacuuming the area, to allow the concoction to do its thing; you may want to cover the area with something ie: a plate, so it doesn’t get spread everywhere.

Red Wine – if you have carpet in your home and enjoy a glass of red wine, then keeping a bottle of soda water in the cupboard is essential ! As soon as the mishap occurs grab the soda water, an old towel and pour the soda water on to the affected area. Now, here is the most important part, you must blot and NOT rub; if you rub the carpet you will only spread the wine, blotting will soak up the wine and soda water. It is also vital to keep rotating the towel so you are constantly using a clean area to blot. Keep repeating the process and you will be amazed that this easy method really works.

Candle Wax – If you are able to get on to this straight away use paper towels or something similar to soak up as much wax as possible – DO NOT RUB – this will only make the problem worse! When the wax is dry use a brown paper bag and your iron, on the lowest setting, lightly iron over the bag on top of the wax affected area. This method also works on clothes and upholstery, so be sure to recycle any clean brown paper bags and keep them at hand. If you are like me and don’t own an iron (hard to believe but true!) you can use your hairdryer.